Dear Annie: My husband recently retired and is taking a trip without me

Dear Annie: My recently retired husband of 43 years has agreed to take a 10-day trip with his sisters. He will be off seeing the Caribbean as I go to work each day back home. He agreed to this trip, and now I find out he will be sharing a bed with his oldest sister, who paid for the trip as a gift to her siblings.

I am not sure how I feel about this, and I am sure he may regret it, too, as she can be quite difficult at times. Am I wrong to be sad by the fact that I am still here, actually paying every bill that we have and working to keep a business afloat? Our neighborhood has also seen a huge uptick in crime, and so I must be home before evening sets in to feel safe here alone.

This is not what I imagined our golden years would be like. Am I wrong to feel excluded and, yes, like a bit of a doormat? — Feeling Like an Old Shoe

Dear Feeling Like an Old Shoe: It is understandable that you feel left out. You and your husband are a unit, and his sister should have taken spouses into consideration. If it was a financial matter, then perhaps she could have invited siblings but everyone pays their own way. As for his sleeping in the same bed with his older sister, that’s highly inappropriate.

View prior ‘Dear Annie’ columns

“How Can I Forgive My Cheating Partner?” is out now! Annie Lane’s second anthology — featuring favorite columns on marriage, infidelity, communication and reconciliation — is available as a paperback and e-book. Visit Creators Publishing for more information. Send your questions for Annie Lane to [email protected].